Matthew 9:14 says, Then came to him the disciples of John, saying, Why do we and the Pharisees fast oft, but thy disciples fast not?  First, we are told of people coming to Jesus and bringing others who needed to be healed, and Jesus healing some.  Then, we had the Pharisees coming to Jesus and accusing Him of blasphemy.  Now, we have the disciples of John the Baptist, grouping themselves with the Pharisees, coming to Jesus questioning His obedience to the law of God.  Though the disciples of John the Baptist were baptized into repentance, they still did not understand Who Jesus was.  There may be those today who come to a partial knowledge of Who Jesus is, but until they accept Him as Savior and Lord, they will never be free from attempting to justify themselves before God.  These disciples of John the Baptist questioned why Jesus and His disciples did not fast as the Pharisees and they did.  It may be that they were claiming a moral superiority by the fact of their actions.  We should never act morally superior to any other Christian, and we definitely should never act morally superior if we ourselves have not come to a saving knowledge of Who Jesus is and that salvation comes by faith in Him alone.  Verse fifteen asks, And Jesus said unto them, Can the children of the bridechamber mourn, as long as the bridegroom is with them? but the days will come, when the bridegroom shall be taken from them, and then shall they fast.  In this analogy, Jesus is the bridegroom.  He was only to be on the earth for a short time, and He was more concerned with fulfilling the law than observing all of the limitations that had come to be associated with the law.  Jesus said that there would be time to fast when the bridegroom was taken away.  Though His earthly ministry was short, we should celebrate the fact that once we accept Jesus as Savior and Lord, He will never be taken away from us.  Verse sixteen states, No man putteth a piece of new cloth unto an old garment, for that which is put in to fill it up taketh from the garment, and the rent is made worse.  Jesus was telling us that He wasn't here to be a new patch on the law of God.  He wasn't sent to repair the law, which people had continually broken, but to fulfill the requirements of the law and bring salvation by faith in Him.  Verse seventeen says, Neither do men put new wine into old bottles: else the bottles break, and the wine runneth out, and the bottles perish: but they put new wine into new bottles, and both are preserved.  Jesus stated that just as new wine is put in new bottles to preserve both the old and the new wine, He came with a new covenant, not to destroy the old covenant, but that both could be preserved.  Jesus did not follow all the rules and regulations that had become associated with the old covenant, because people could not be saved by the law.  Still, He fulfilled all the requirements of the law, which was never based on people's actions, but instead on their relationship with God.  Jesus alone was able to meet all the requirements of this perfect relationship.

Matthew 9:9 says, And as Jesus passed forth from thence, he saw a man, named Matthew, sitting at the receipt of custom: and he saith unto him, Follow me. And he arose, and followed him.  Jesus was still calling His disciples, and when He saw Matthew, a tax collector, Jesus told him to come and follow Him.  Jesus first called fishermen and now He called a tax collector, who was despised by most.  Matthew had to have had faith in Jesus, because he arose and followed Him.  Verse ten states, And it came to pass, as Jesus sat at meat in the house, behold, many publicans and sinners came and sat down with him and his disciples.  We can assume that this was Matthew's house, but whatever house it was, publicans and sinners joined Jesus and His disciples for the meal.  Jesus will always invite even the vilest of sinners to join Him by faith in His sacrifice for salvation.  People must come to Jesus just as they are, and He will willingly accept them.  Verse eleven says, And when the Pharisees saw it, they said unto his disciples, Why eateth your Master with publicans and sinners?  Some of the religious leaders, Pharisees, questioned the disciples about Jesus eating with publicans and sinners.  The Pharisees took pride in believing that they were morally superior to other people because of their strict adherence to God's law.  They did no go to Jesus to get an answer to their question.  Those who would attempt to discredit Jesus today will often attempt to do so by getting His followers or disciples to question what Jesus teaches.   Verse twelve declares, But when Jesus heard that, he said unto them, They that be whole need not a physician, but they that are sick.  Though the Pharisees did not ask their question to Jesus, He heard what they were asking.  We can never question God, whether directly or indirectly, without Him knowing about it.  That is why, if we have a question about God's teachings, we should go to God for the answer.  Jesus said that those who were whole didn't need a physician.  Verse thirteen states, But go ye and learn what that meaneth, I will have mercy, and not sacrifice: for I am not come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance.  The Pharisees thought themselves to be the ultimate authority on God's word, but Jesus told them to go and learn what He meant by saying the whole didn't need a physician, but the sick did.  Jesus said that He would have mercy instead of sacrifice and call sinners and not the self-righteous to repentance.  We should never attempt to limit who can come to Jesus for salvation, but instead should reach out to the lost of the world.  We should never become so self righteous that we feel that anyone is unworthy of salvation, no matter how sinful they may be.

Matthew 9:1 says, And he entered into a ship, and passed over, and came into his own city.  Jesus once again took a ship across the sea and came back to His own country.  I don't believe that we can say that Jesus was run out of the country, but that He chose to leave where He wasn't wanted and continue with His ministry.  A lost person cannot drive Jesus away from a position of being more powerful than Him, but if that person continually say no to Him, He may depart from that person.  Verse two states, And, behold, they brought to him a man sick of the palsy, lying on a bed: and Jesus seeing their faith said unto the sick of the palsy; Son, be of good cheer; thy sins be forgiven thee.  People were still bringing the sick to Jesus to be healed.  They saw Jesus as One Who could restore physical health, but had not yet come to see Him as One Who could restore spiritual health.  They brought a man who had palsy, and lying in his bed.  He had to rely on others to get him to Jesus.  There are those today who need help in coming to Jesus, which is why we as followers of Christ must go out into the world with the gospel.  Jesus told the man to be of good cheer, because his sins were forgiven.  The man had been brought for a physical healing, but he received much more.  When Jesus forgives us of our sins, it is so much more than just a physical healing.  It is a spiritual restoration.  Verse three says, And, behold, certain of the scribes said within themselves, This man blasphemeth.  Jesus again encountered some scribes, or religious leaders, and they accused Him of blasphemy.  Sometimes those who should be the first to acknowledge the saving power of Christ are the hardest to reach, because He threatens their position in the world.  Verse four declares, And Jesus knowing their thoughts said, Wherefore think ye evil in your hearts?  Jesus knew their thoughts, just as we are told that we will be held accountable for our thoughts as well as our actions.  Jesus asked them why they thought evil in their hearts, or their innermost thoughts.  If we question the power of Jesus today, then we are guilty of evil in our innermost thoughts.  We should never question the power of God.  Verse five asks, For whether is easier, to say, Thy sins be forgiven thee; or to say, Arise, and walk?  Jesus was asking why He would have said that the man's sins were forgiven if He was not able to forgive them.  Jesus could have simply told the man to rise up and walk, and he would have been able to do so.  The man wanted to walk, but Jesus saw a greater, more lasting need.  The man needed to be forgiven for his sins.  I believe that when we come to Jesus today, even if it is for the wrong reason, that He stands ready to forgive our sins, if we only allow Him to by putting our faith in His ability.  Verse six states, But that ye may know that the Son of man hath power on earth to forgive sins, (then saith he to the sick of the palsy,) Arise, take up thy bed, and go unto thine house.  Jesus tells us that He not only told the man that his sins were forgiven for his benefit, but for the benefit of all those around him.  They needed to understand that Jesus has the power to forgive sins.  He is actually the only One Who can.  Verse seven declares, And he arose, and departed to his house.  The man got up and walked to his house.  When we come to Jesus in faith, He will always exceed our expectations.  This man came simply for physical healing, but he departed spiritually healed as well. Verse eight states, But when the multitudes saw it, they marvelled, and glorified God, which had given such power unto men.  When God performs a miracle in the world, we should marvel and glorify Him, and there is no greater miracle than the salvation that Christ offers us through our faith in Him.

Matthew 8:28 says, And when he was come to the other side into the country of the Gergesenes, there met him two possessed with devils, coming out of the tombs, exceeding fierce, so that no man might pass by that way.  After Jesus had crossed to the other side to get away from the multitudes for awhile and had calmed the stormy sea, He encountered another obstacle.  There were two possessed with devils, who were evidently living in the grave yard, who would have blocked the way Jesus was going.  I believe that what we need to understand is that just because we have been successful in overcoming problems by our faith in Christ, that does not mean that we will never face another problem.  The opposite may be true.  If we are being successful in witnessing for Christ, Satan will notice and attempt to stop us.  Verse twenty-nine says, And, behold, they cried out, saying, What have we to do with thee, Jesus, thou Son of God? art thou come hither to torment us before the time?  These two, possessed by devils, recognized Jesus for Who He is.  That was more than the religious leaders of God's people did.  They asked what Jesus, the Son of God, had to do with them.  They may have felt that they were just too evil for Jesus to redeem them, so they wondered if He had come to torment them.  We need to understand that no one is ever to evil to be redeemed by Christ, and that He never comes to torment people, but to save them.  Verse thirty states, And there was a good way off from them an herd of many swine feeding.  Swine were really considered as unclean to the people of Israel, so they would likely have been of no real significance to Jesus.  Verse thirty-one states, So the devils besought him, saying, If thou cast us out, suffer us to go away into the herd of swine.  We should first recognize that these devils that possessed these two men acknowledged the power of Jesus over them.  They did not say cast us out if you are able to do so.  They simply said to Jesus that if He cast them out that they be allowed to enter the swine.  Like these demons, Satan knows that he is powerless against God.  Though Satan may rule a person completely, if that person calls on Jesus for salvation, then Satan's rule over that person will be over.  Verse thirty-two states, And he said unto them, Go. And when they were come out, they went into the herd of swine: and, behold, the whole herd of swine ran violently down a steep place into the sea, and perished in the waters.  Jesus allowed the demons to enter the swine, but their escape was brief.  The whole herd of swine ran violently into the sea and drowned.  I am not sure why the demons were not able to escape the swine, but I think it was because they had submitted to the authority of Jesus.  Satan and his disciples really do have limited power in the world.  Verse thirty-three says, And they that kept them fled, and went their ways into the city, and told every thing, and what was befallen to the possessed of the devils.  Those who had kept the swine went into the city and told what had happened to the swine and to the two who had been possessed of the devils.  Verse thirty-four declares, And, behold, the whole city came out to meet Jesus: and when they saw him, they besought him that he would depart out of their coasts.  Evidently the people were not happy about the two who were restored to sanity.  They were evidently more concerned about the loss of the swine.  For whatever reason, the whole city came out to Jesus to ask Him to leave their coasts.  There are whole countries today where Jesus is not welcome.  In some places, it is because they worship another god, and some places it is because they claim there is no God.  Even if miracles occur, they will never welcome Jesus.

Matthew 8:23 says, And when he was entered into a ship, his disciples followed him.  When Jesus was leaving the multitudes, He got into a ship.  We are not told who the ship belonged to, but possibly one of the disciples.  We can be certain that Jesus did not just take someone's ship without having the right to do so.  We likewise cannot just take what belongs to someone else and claim that as a follower of Christ we have a right to do so, even if we are doing something for God.  The disciples followed Jesus onto the ship.  They did not know where He was going, but they were following Him wherever He was going.  We need to always follow where Jesus leads us.  Verse twenty-four states, And, behold, there arose a great tempest in the sea, insomuch that the ship was covered with the waves: but he was asleep.  We might think that where Jesus is that all would be calm, but a great storm arose.  I believe that we should be ready for storms to come to our lives today if we are following Christ.  As the storm was raging, Jesus was sleeping, which implies that He was at peace in the storm.  I believe we can have that same peace in the storms today, if we put our faith in God.  Verse twenty-five states, And his disciples came to him, and awoke him, saying, Lord, save us: we perish.  The disciples, though physically with Jesus, were afraid that they were going to die.  They at least went to the right source for deliverance: Jesus.  When we are in the storms of life today, we must look to Jesus for deliverance.  Verse twenty-six declares, And he saith unto them, Why are ye fearful, O ye of little faith? Then he arose, and rebuked the winds and the sea; and there was a great calm.  The disciples thought they had to wake Jesus up to be delivered from the storm.  Jesus declared them to have little faith.  We need to have faith that the Holy Spirit is always with us and knows our needs, even in the storms when it may not seem to be true.  Jesus rebuked the winds, and there was a great calm.  Jesus can bring that great calm to our lives today, if we live by faith in Him.  We should never focus on the storms, but on the One Who can calm the storms.  Verse twenty-seven declares, But the men marvelled, saying, What manner of man is this, that even the winds and the sea obey him!  We should marvel at Jesus, because He is able to calm all the storms of life if someone only puts their faith in Him.  Even when the storms rage around us, we are secure for the rest of eternity if we keep our faith in Jesus.  Jesus is the One Who secures us for all eternity, no matter what storms we face in life.  Had the faith of the disciples been strong enough, they would not have feared the storm, since Jesus was with them.  Neither should we fear the storms as long as we are following Christ by faith.

Matthew 8:14 says, And when Jesus was come into Peter’s house, he saw his wife’s mother laid, and sick of a fever.  First, we see that Peter was married.  Yet, when Jesus called Peter, he followed Jesus.  Second, we see that Jesus came to Peter's house.  I am not sure how the dynamics of Peter's marriage and his relationship to Jesus worked, but I can be certain that Jesus never called on Peter to do anything that was against the law of God.  We will never be called to do anything that goes against God's law either, but we will always be called to put following Christ first.  Finally, we see that Peter's mother-in-law was very sick.  Verse fifteen states, And he touched her hand, and the fever left her: and she arose, and ministered unto them.  The touch of Jesus healed her completely and immediately.  Though this was a physical healing, we can be certain that Jesus will heal us completely and immediately spiritually when we accept Him by faith when He comes to us to give us salvation.  Peter's mother-in-law then ministered to them.  When Jesus heals us, we must minister to those around us who are in need.  Verse sixteen says, When the even was come, they brought unto him many that were possessed with devils: and he cast out the spirits with his word, and healed all that were sick:  The word that Jesus was healing those who were physically sick spread, and many sick people were brought to Him.  Sometimes today, people will come to Jesus simply seeking physical healing.  This is not why Jesus came.  He came to bring spiritual reconciliation between people and God.  Verse seventeen states, That it might be fulfilled which was spoken by Esaias the prophet, saying, Himself took our infirmities, and bare our sicknesses.  Though physical healing was not the primary role of Jesus His healing sickness does fulfill a prophecy.  Again, not that Jesus healed people just to fulfill the prophecy.  He healed people out of compassion for them, but this was but a temporary healing, that could only last in this lifetime.  Jesus came to bring an everlasting spiritual healing.  Verse eighteen says, Now when Jesus saw great multitudes about him, he gave commandment to depart unto the other side.  Jesus gave the command to depart from the great multitudes.  He could not afford to be distracted from His task for too long.  Verse nineteen states, And a certain scribe came, and said unto him, Master, I will follow thee whithersoever thou goest.  This scribe may have been caught up in the power that Jesus had to heal and the number of people that were coming to Him.  Verse twenty declares, And Jesus saith unto him, The foxes have holes, and the birds of the air have nests; but the Son of man hath not where to lay his head.  I believe that Jesus was telling this scribe, and anyone else, not to follow Him expecting material blessings.  Jesus could have profitted from healing people if He chose to do so, but that was not His purpose.  We should never attempt to profit materially from our relationship with Christ.  Verse twenty-one says, And another of his disciples said unto him, Lord, suffer me first to go and bury my father.  Then in verse twenty-two Jesus replies, But Jesus said unto him, Follow me; and let the dead bury their dead.  I don't believe that Jesus was being cold-hearted in this statement.  I believe that He was simply saying to not put conditions on following Him.  Jesus came for the living, and once a person is dead, no matter how elaborate a funeral they may have, their everlasting destination is already determined.  We must put following Jesus above everything else.

Matthew 8:1 says, When he was come down from the mountain, great multitudes followed him.  Jesus at times removed Himself from the multitudes, but then He would go into the midst of them again.  We may need time to remove ourselves from the pressures of the world, but ultimately we have to get back into the midst of the world.  We cannot simply withdraw and hope to reach the lost.  Verse two says, And, behold, there came a leper and worshipped him, saying, Lord, if thou wilt, thou canst make me clean.  This leper, one who could not even be touched by normal people, came to Jesus in faith.  No matter how unclean a person may be, they can always come to Jesus for cleansing and healing.  Verse three states, And Jesus put forth his hand, and touched him, saying, I will; be thou clean. And immediately his leprosy was cleansed.  Touching a leper made a person spiritually unclean under the law, but Jesus not only touched the leper, but He healed him as well.  The leper had to have faith in the healing power of Jesus to be healed, just as we must have faith in the healing power of Jesus to be spiritually healed.  There was no delay in the healing of the leper.  I believe that when God heals a person, physically or spiritually, that it begins with faith in His ability to do so.  The leper did not come to Jesus asking what he had to do or even if it were possible for him to be saved.  He came by faith stating that he knew Jesus could heal him.  Verse four says, And Jesus saith unto him, See thou tell no man; but go thy way, shew thyself to the priest, and offer the gift that Moses commanded, for a testimony unto them.  Jesus gave the man, who was no longer a leper, instructions to follow.  In this case, it was to not tell anyone what had happened.  I believe this was for two reasons.  One was that Jesus did not want people to follow Him simply for material reasons, and a physical healing would be one such reason.  Jesus still does not want people to follow Him simply for material reasons.  Second, Jesus did not come for the purpose of blessing people materially.  This has to do with the purpose of Jesus coming and not with the perception of those around Him.  Jesus came to bring everlasting spiritual restoration to anyone who will put their faith in Him, and not for a temporary physical healing.